Dean Colvard, former MSU president, dies at 93

Dean Wallace Colvard, who led Mississippi State University as president during the early 1960s, died Thursday at a Charlotte, North Carolina, hospital. He was 93.

Funeral services for Colvard will be held Monday at Covenant Presbyterian Church in Charlotte.

Colvard was president of MSU from 1960 to 1966.

Colvard, for whom Mississippi State's student union is named, reorganized MSU's academic structure, expanded the library's collection of books and journals and secured funds for construction of a student union building to replace the YMCA building as the primary student gathering place on campus.

In 1961, the University Honors Program was established. He helped form the MSU Development Foundation in 1962.

Colvard was president when Mississippi State was integrated in the early 1960s.

In 1963, Colvard defied school policy and ordered the men's basketball team to play against an integrated Loyola University of Chicago team.

Colvard's presidency also saw the renovation, expansion and construction of new buildings on campus, including four new dormitories and apartments for married students.

In January 1966, Colvard became chancellor of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where he would remain for 13 years until his retirement in December 1978.

During Colvard's tenure at UNC-Charlotte, enrollment grew from about 1700 students to more than 8000.

Jones County Junior College makes its second straight appearance in the NJCAA National Tournament in Lubbock, Texas. The four-seeded Lady Bobcats (26-3) face the winner of Northeast Oklahoma A&M and Trinity Valley on Wednesday at 1 p.m.

Jones County Junior College makes its second straight appearance in the NJCAA National Tournament in Lubbock, Texas. The four-seeded Lady Bobcats (26-3) face the winner of Northeast Oklahoma A&M and Trinity Valley on Wednesday at 1 p.m.